ARTICLE 6. Emergency Broadcasting Grant Program [8840. - 8846.]

Cal. Government Code - GOV 6.

in effect

Cal. Government Code - GOV § 8840. Section 8840.

For purposes of this article, “eligible radio station” means a radio station that, at the time of applying for a grant under this article, meets both of the following requirements: (a) It has met all of the following requirements for a period of two years unless another time is specified: (1) It is licensed by the Federal Communications Commission as a noncommercial educational station, or is operating under program test authority pending the grant of a license. (2) It has its community of license and principal administrative offices in this state and is not owned, controlled, managed, or primarily financed by any corporation or entity outside of this state. (3) It provides a program service that meets the requirements for a Community Service Grant from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. (4) It provides significant locally originated programming in its community of license. (5) It broadcasts not less than 15 hours per day, 365 days per year. (6) It participates in statewide public broadcasting projects. (7) It has provided, before its application for a grant under this article, an audited financial statement for the years on which the grant is based. (8) It does either of the following: (A) Meets the criteria for receipt of a Community Service Grant from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting that were in effect on June 30, 1995. (B) Two months before applying for a grant, the station has a full-time staff of at least one professional paid not less than the California minimum wage, and is certified by the commission as providing a needed service to its community of license. (b) It enters into a permanent agreement with the Office of Emergency Services to dedicate, as necessary, a broadcast channel for the provision of emergency information, to broadcast that information, and to ensure that it is presented in a format that makes it accessible to the deaf, hard-of-hearing, and non-English-speaking populations throughout its broadcast area, including rural and isolated populations.

Cal. Government Code - GOV § 8841. Section 8841.

For purposes of this article, “eligible television station” means a television station that, at the time of applying for a grant under this article, unless another time is specified, meets all of the following requirements: (a) It has met all of the following requirements for a period of two years: (1) It is licensed by the Federal Communications Commission as a noncommercial educational television station, or is operating under program test authority pending the grant of a license. (2) It has its community of license and principal administrative offices in this state, and is not owned, controlled, managed, or primarily financed by any corporation or entity outside of this state. (3) It provides a program service that meets the requirements for a Community Service Grant from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. (4) It provides substantial and significant locally originated programming in its community of license. (5) It broadcasts not less than 2,500 hours per year. (6) It participates in statewide public broadcasting projects. (7) It meets the criteria for receipt of a Community Service Grant or base grant from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting that were in effect on June 30, 1994. (8) It has provided, before its application for a grant under this article, an audited financial statement for the years on which the grant is based. (b) It enters into a permanent agreement with the Office of Emergency Services to dedicate, as necessary, a broadcast channel for the provision of emergency information, to broadcast that information, and to ensure that it is presented in a format that makes it accessible to the deaf, hard-of-hearing, and non-English-speaking populations throughout its broadcast area, including rural and isolated populations. (c) At the time of disbursement of the funds, it certifies in writing by the station manager or an officer of the licensee that it has in its public file a plan to address the needs of significant linguistic minorities in its service area.

Cal. Government Code - GOV § 8842. Section 8842.

For the purposes of this article, “nonfederal financial support” means the total sum of revenues from nonfederal sources derived by a licensee in a fiscal year and reported in an audited financial statement thereof, and does not include in-kind services, funds received for the purpose of constructing or remodeling a building, funds received from other public broadcasting stations or networks for the production of programming or for other services to those stations or networks, or funds provided to stations under this chapter. Interest income generated from any source may be included in “nonfederal financial support.”

Cal. Government Code - GOV § 8843. Section 8843.

For purposes of this article, “station” or “public broadcasting station” means any eligible radio or television station.

Cal. Government Code - GOV § 8844. Section 8844.

(a) Recognizing the necessity of converting California stations to the technologies of digital broadcasting, the Legislature intends that funds may be appropriated to the Office of Emergency Services for the purchase of equipment by eligible stations, the installation of that equipment, or purchase of other materials related to that equipment, pursuant to this article. (b) The office shall solicit applications for grant funds from eligible stations throughout the state, and shall allocate funds appropriated pursuant to subdivision (a) as follows: (1) Seventy-five percent of any equipment purchase funds appropriated pursuant to subdivision (a) shall be placed in an equipment grant pool for eligible television stations, and 25 percent shall be placed in an equipment grant pool for eligible radio stations. (2) Fifty percent of the funds in each grant pool shall be divided equally among the stations in that grant pool. (3) The remaining 50 percent of the funds in each grant pool shall be divided among stations in that grant pool in proportion to their nonfederal financial support. (c) (1) Funds provided under this section shall be granted on a matching basis, with each station required to raise from other sources an amount equal to the funds provided to it under this section. (2) If any funds remain in either grant pool because of the limitations set forth in paragraph (1), the remaining funds shall be returned to the same pool for distribution to other stations that have raised the required matching funds, in amounts proportionate to the nonfederal financial support of those stations.

Cal. Government Code - GOV § 8846. Section 8846.

It is the intent of the Legislature that any funds provided to stations under this article shall supplement, rather than supplant, funds provided from other sources. To that end, institutions that have heretofore provided funding to stations licensed to them shall certify, in applying for grants, that they have not previously and will not in the future use funds provided under this chapter to supplant institutional support of their stations.

Source: CA Legislative Counsel Bulk DataURL: https://downloads.leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/pubinfo_2025.zipFetched: 6/27/2026